Defensive Lineman Justus Boone Signs With the Florida Gators
Sumter (S.C.) defensive lineman Justus Boone has signed his national letter of intent to become a member of the Florida Gators as part of the 2021 recruiting class.
Choosing Florida over home-state South Carolina amongst others on February 26, 2020, the Sports Illustrated All-American Top 1000 prospect marked the end of his recruitment on Wednesday.
Standing at 6-foot-5, 250 pounds, Boone played as an oversized defensive end in high school and provided a dominant presence on the strong side of the Sumter front.
With strength and aggression off the line, Boone has a knack for blowing up plays in the backfield in both the passing and rushing games, tallying 26.5 tackles for loss and 12 sacks throughout his high school career.
On a similar pattern of growth to current Gators defensive lineman Zachary Carter coming out of high school, Boone’s raw talent and near-identical height and weight to Carter—who was 6-foot-4, 250 pounds his senior year of high school—allows him to possess the rare versatility to flex from the interior to exterior of the defensive line with ease if needed.
Looking to possibly add some weight to his already large frame and play on the interior more often than not, Boone’s on-field impact may be limited early on while he grows into his new position. However, given his athletic abilities and length, the transition to the inside should carry out smoothly and allow him to see the field early upon his arrival to Gainesville.
Boone is set to enroll early at the University of Florida for the upcoming spring term of 2021, getting a head start on his move from the high school to college level.
You can check out the full scouting report on Justus Boone here and welcome him to Florida by following him on Twitter here.
Bottom Line: Boone is going to have to lose weight to stick at the defensive end position, but you shouldn't want him there anyway. Add 20 pounds and a college strength-and-conditioning program and best case you could be looking at Javon Kinlaw. Worst case, he’s a Marlon Davidson type of defensive end in an odd front defense.